As he and his camp have said, Buffalo real estate developer Carl Paladino, after failing to muster the 25 percent needed to get on the GOP gubernatorial ballot yesterday, is launching a petition drive to get on both the Republican ballot, where he’ll challenge party nominee Rick Lazio, and for a spot on a yet-to-be-named Tea Party-type ballot.

True to form, Paladino kept up his anti-establishment tone, although he was a bit more subdued than yesterday where he basically ranted against Albany during his nomination speech. To be sure, his campaign will be anti-Lazio, who he said “doesn’t really have the depth on the issues, as well as anti-Cuomo, who he believes need to be called to account both for his role as federal HUD secretary during the years of a now-collapsed housing boom, and for what Paladino said are his efforts to all of the sudden start acting like a conservative.

“The real demons are here in Albany right now led by Andrew Cuomo,” said Paladino who contends that Cuomo, through power broker and former Sen. Al D’Amato have agreed that Lazio would carry the GOP flag with the understanding that Cuomo will sweep the election, and continue keeping the political elites of both parties in power.

“Andrew Cuomo, who feels he is entitled to this office will be our immediate target,” said Paladino.

Almost no one escaped Paladino’s verbal lashing, not the Legislature, the
Conservatives or his own Republican party.

As to dealing with lawmakers, “I’m not going to any table and sitting down in front of these creeps. They are going to be playing my game.”

As for the state Republican party bosses who are (like they always do in any contested primary) planning to challenge his petitions): “I thought guys in construction were cuthroat. Some county chairmen here make these guys look like Girl Scouts….One big happy family, right? They are very proud of what they had done together.”

As for the mechanics of his race, Paladino, and his Buffalo based consultant Michael Caputo, has hired political operative John Haggerty to run his petition drives for GOP and a third party — which he expects will cost about $500,000 (he has a $10 million war chest). He also has two people in mind for Lt. Gov. (not Myles Mermel) who he would want to groom to takeover after Paladino’s four-year term were end.

Paladino, got 7.89 percent of the weighted delegate votes — from Orleans and Erie counties — at yesterday’s nomination is clearly a long shot here, especially considering Lazio’s broader name recognition. And for the general, party backing and then for the general election, Cuomo’s even higher recognition and poll numbers.

But several GOP operatives and insiders I’ve heard from say they believe it’s possible that Paladino, with a $10 million war chest, and with Lazio dented by the rift with Steve Levy, could muscle his way on to the ballot.

That frightens many Republicans who fear that Paladino’s harsh rhetoric and take-no-prisoners attitude, while heartfelt and reflective of voter dissatisfaction, could also alienate a lot of mainstream GOP voters. For many Republicans here at the convention, this was about not beating Cuomo in the governor’s race,which some quietly admit is a longshot, but about keeping their beleaguered party together.

As to the quip about shoes in the headline, Paladino and Caputo played part of a 2004 radio interview between Westchester broadcaster Bill O’Shaughnessy, Cuomo and Lazio in which the three engaged in friendly banter and ribbed O’Shaugnessy about his stylish suede shoes.”

“We will not under any circumstances comment on footwear,” quipped Caputo, who was sporting his own pair of suede penny loafer. “We do not have the expertise.”

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